Fuel economizer and smoke reducer



June 28, 1932. -c. PROTZMANN 1,865,133

FUEL .EQONOMIZER AND SMOKE REDUCER .Filed Nov. 22, 1930 Patented June 28, 1932 UNITED STATES CHARLES PROTZMAN'N', OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN FUEL ECONOMIZER AND SMOKE REDUCER Application filed November 22, 1930. SerialNo. 497,471.

This invention relates to an improved fuel economizer and smoke reducer.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of an article of the above character which is adapted to be applied to furnace doors for providing the proper amount of moisture within the furnace to assist in the heating facilities of the fuel and to reduce the density of the smoke which arises from the burning fuel.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a device of the above character which is applied to the door of a furnace and includes means for heating a predetermined quantity of water to cause a steam or vapor to rise therefrom and be passed into the fire box of the furnace wherein moisture from the steam will have a tendency to increase the heating qualities of the fuel and reduce the density'of the smoke arising therefrom.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel features of construction, the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in the claim and shown in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a sectional view on the line 1-1 of Figure 2;

Figure 2 is a vertical section on the line 22 of Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a detailed section on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, 1 indicates a furnace wall provided with a door opening 2 which leads to the fire box and normally closing this opening is a swinging door 3, generally of the box type so as to provide a housing or receiving chamber 3. Attached to the front of the door 3 is a water tank, having a pivoted cover 5 which is adapted to normally close the upper open end of the water box i.

Arranged upon the interior of the door 3 is a heater box 6, which is provided with a transverse partition 7 that extends lengthwise ofthe heater box and is provided at its inner end with an upwardly projecting part 8. Forming communication between the heater box 6 and the water box 4, is a tubular member 9, one end of which is threaded into an opening in one wall of the box 6, while the other end has thereon a nut 10 which not only supports the box 4 in position relative to the door 3, but also retains the tube member 9 in its operative position.

By extending the partition 7 longitudinally of the box 6 and then upwardly toward one end thereof, it provides a chamber 11 and communicating with this chamber is a tube 12, the inner end of which is threaded into a suitable opening in the box 6, as shown in Figure 2, the outer end of the tube being retained in position by means of a suitable nut and washer 13, and also retains the water box 4; in an upright position due to the fact that the tube 12 extends transversely through the door 3, as well as through the inner wall of the box 6 and an upper flange on the box 4c.

As illustrated in Figure 3, the tubular member 12 communicates with the chamber 11 and adjacent the upright partition member 8, while a discharge pipe nipple 14 connects with the housing member on the opposite side of the upright partition 8; Communication between the water box 4 and the heater box 6 is established by means of the tube or pipe member 9, whereby water from the box l can readily pass into the heater box 6 and as the heater box is upon the inside of the door and subjected to the severe heat from the fire, the water in box 6 will become heated and vaporize, the vapor from the heated water rising upwardly and passing out through the outlet nipple 14. Attached to the nipple 14 is an elbow 15 and connected to the other end of the elbow is a short nozzle like pipe member V o In the operation of the device, the tank 4 is first filled with water, the water passing into the heater box 6, through the tubular member 9 and will rise upwardly in the box 6 to an equal height in the box 4. Due to the fact that the box 6 is arranged upon the inside of the door 3 and is subjected to considerable heat, the water within this box 6 will vaporize and rise upwardly. This water vapor will pass out through nipple 1a and nozzle member 16. In order to create a circulation within the heater box 6, the tubular member 12 leads inwardly from the exterior of the door 3, said tubular member entering chamber 11 as indicated in Figure 3, so that a draft of air can be supplied to chamber 11 which will circulate up over the upright way across the heater box and provided with a vertically disposed portion spaced from the top of the heater box, an air inlet communicating with the chamber formed by said horizontal and vertical partitions, and a discharge outlet communicating with the heater box on the opposite side of the vertical partition from the air inlet.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of VVisconsin.

CHARLES PROTZMANN.

partition 8 and be mixed with the steam or vapor arising from the heatedwater within the box 6, before passing out through the nipple 1a and into the nozzle-like member 2o 16 It is a well known fact that moisture increases combustion and as the air and water vapor pass into the furnace over the fuel, the dampness will tend to facilitate the combustion of fuel. The moist air will mingle with the smoke rising from the burning fuel and will have a. tendency to reduce the density of the smoke, in that the moisture will act to carry the carbon therein back down on the fuel bed. Thus the device will act as a fuel economizer and smoke reducer.

It will be apparant from the foregoing that the device can be quickly and readily applied to doors of furnaces of different makes so that the heater box 6 will be arranged upon the interior of the furnace and the water box 4 be positioned upon the outside thereof as illustrated in the drawing, thus a certain amount of vapor or steam can be utilized and mixed with air entering the furnace for aiding combustion of the fueland reducing the density of the smoke arising from the burning fuel. The device is very simple in construction and can be manufactured and placed on the market at a very low cost.

In order to drain the heater box 6 for removing sediment, etc., therefrom, a removable plug 17 is fitted into a suitable threaded opening in the bottom of the box 6, as illustrated in Figures 2 and 3, whereby this plug can be quickly removed when it is desired to drain and clean the heater box 6.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be apparent that slight changes may be made in the construction when putting the invention into practice without departing from the spirit of the same or the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

7 In combination with a fire box door, a water box and a heater box arranged on opposite sides thereof, means formingcommunication between said boxes adjacent the bottom thereof, a horizontal partition extending part 

